Weatherford approves yearly interlocal to join Tarrant County auto crimes task force

The Weatherford City Council authorized the city manager to execute the Tarrant County Regional Auto Crimes Task Force interlocal assistance agreement, continuing the Weatherford Police Department's participation in the regional effort to investigate motor vehicle thefts and related offenses. Chief of Police Jason Hayes told the council the task force, established in 1993, is a regional partnership of investigators from 14 state and local agencies and serves more than 2.4 million people; he said the task force has expanded beyond vehicle theft to include motor-vehicle burglaries, parts theft and vehicle-related fraud. "They've been a tremendous asset for us," Hayes said, explaining that since Weatherford joined the task force the department has seen a roughly "20 to 25% increase in our clearance rate." Hayes also reported the city averages about "30 to 35" auto thefts a year and that many incidents are preventable because a "vast majority of those are unlocked cars with the keys left in them." The interlocal carries an approximate cost to the city of $25,000, as discussed in the meeting materials. Council discussion included a request from Councilmember Rotem for recent data on local auto-theft trends; Hayes replied with the clearance-rate figures and described the task force as a "force multiplier" that provides access to national databases, facial-recognition and specialized investigative resources that Weatherford does not have in-house. The motion to authorize the agreement was moved from the dais by the Mayor Pro Tem and seconded by Luke Williams; the council voted to approve the interlocal agreement for the coming fiscal year.